Barbers typically use two or more sizes of electric hair clippers during hair cutting and, when an electric hair clipper is not being used, the hair clipper is typically laid on a counter adjacent the barber's chair. Because of the proximity of the counter to the barber's chair and the attendant movement of the barber about the chair during hair cutting, the barber may inadvertently snag the electric cord of the hair clipper which often partially hangs off the counter thereby pulling the hair clipper off of the counter to drop down onto the floor. Additionally, a barber may not properly place the hair clipper onto the counter during hair cutting, whereby the hair clipper may fall or slide off of the counter being pulled by the weight of its electric cord hanging off the counter. The hair cutting teeth of the hair clipper are somewhat fragile and can easily be broken in a resultant fall and, to the detriment of the barber, such a damaged hair clipper is extremely expensive to repair or replace.
A conventional solution for safeguarding against the accidental dropping of electric hair clippers which has found wide spread commercial use throughout the barber industry is the attachment of a loop to the end of the hair clipper in proximity to where the electric cord extends from the hair clipper, referred to herein as the "bottom" of the hair clipper. A corresponding hook is attached to the edge or side wall of the counter adjacent the workspace of the barber and the hair clipper is hung in an "upside down" position along the side of the counter. Once the hair clipper is placed in a position wherein the hook extends through the loop, the hair clipper is relatively secured against inadvertent dropping. Losenno, U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,773, teaches this conventional solution in the field of beautician's tools such as hair dryers and curling irons.
An improvement that has recently been made in this "hanging" approach and which is believed to represent the state-of-the-art in hair clipper retention is disclosed in Smith, U.S. Pat. No. 5,379,903, wherein the electric cord of each hair clipper is retracted into a box against which the hair clippers hang bottom-up in an upside down position.
A disadvantage to the conventional solution, even when refined as disclosed in Smith, is that the electric cord of a hair clipper tends to extend below the hair clipper in the retained upside down position, which causes the electric cord to bend or curve a full one-hundred and eighty degrees after immediately extending from the hair clipper. This curvature places an extreme stress on the connection of the electric cord with the hair clipper and results in the electric cord malfunctioning, i.e., shorting out, before the full life expectancy of the hair clipper otherwise enjoyed is fully realized.
A second disadvantage to the conventional solution is that the electric hair clipper is only relatively secure when the hook is extended through the loop. Thus, if the hair clipper slides from the barber's grasp while attempting to place the loop over the hook, or if the barber prematurely releases the hair clipper believing that the loop and hook have registered, the hair clipper will once again be dropped and subject to breaking.
There thus continues a need in the barbering profession for an improved apparatus for receiving and retaining electric hair clippers which safeguards against the accidental dropping of the hair clippers but which does not reduce the useful life of the hair clippers by causing the electric cord to short out.
The present invention satisfies this need as well as provides other benefits and advantages which will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art based on the following disclosure.